Let the burning passion of thought cool down and transform into cold, mechanical energy.

The radiant light shines high above, leaving no place for shadows to hide.

With the aid of mathematical calculations spreading across the sky, countless rays of light were condensed, directing their intertwined heat and sharpness toward the enemy.

Stun is one, paralysis is one, and disability is five. The closest distance is five yards, and the furthest distance is ninety-eight yards.

Dangerous material confirmed; defenses breached.

The hostage rescue has been confirmed.

Environmental structure confirmed.

Analyze wind direction and humidity, analyze the shortest magic path, and confirm the activation channel.

The single enemy's intention to counterattack has been confirmed, the difference in strength between the enemy and ourselves has been confirmed, and the next attack will be determined to be the chaos of magic flow caused by the elemental stone explosion.

Countermeasure: Unleash a barrage of fire.

A light red fluffy ball of fur chirped as it flew out from my chest and excitedly circled in the air. The tips of its newly grown tail feathers were tinged with golden-red, trailing behind as it flew through the air, like a living flame suddenly ignited out of thin air.

"ah……"

He raised his right hand slightly, then lowered it again. The tiny explosion was masked by the dense gunfire. When he opened his eyes again, there was no one in front of him. Only a wisp of black dust rose from the broken ground, and countless flying particles rolled outwards.

This is still the result of controlling the output.

I blinked, trying to reconnect with my pent-up emotions, then looked away and glanced around.

The group that the leader had previously sent out to investigate the ice wall fissures all turned back to look at this spot, their mouths agape, frozen in place like statues. Seeing me looking at them, one of them immediately knelt down with a thud, followed by another, and then yet another.

Even worse, some people's legs were shaking uncontrollably, and a dark stain of water spread from the hem of their clothes, emitting an unpleasant stench. Even without thinking, one could roughly guess what had happened.

Honestly, it's a bit disgusting.

They lacked both basic manners and the qualities expected of a monk.

I frowned and snapped my fingers, ignoring the person's sudden scream. I lit a wall of fire half a meter in front of him to keep out the stench, and grabbed Fei Fei, who was about to rush out excitedly. I held her in my arms and gently patted her back to comfort her.

Some fluffy little creatures lay obediently in my arms, but still blinked their eyes, which were no bigger than mung beans, curiously from time to time, trying to look around me at the half-person-high wall of fire behind me.

Left with no other choice, I fed it some flames, which finally calmed the restless little guy down.

The remaining few people had lost their will to resist and collapsed on the spot in a daze. I peeked at the person who had been nailed to the basement entrance through the shoulder blade and confirmed that he had fainted before looking at Shen Xue and the other person who had straightened their posture outside and nodded to them.

Incidentally, the little boy who had just been teary-eyed was now staring wide-eyed in astonishment at everything that was happening. But whether it was because he knew very little about mages, or because I had acted too quickly, the little guy seemed much calmer than the others who were sitting dejectedly nearby.

The ice wall, no longer sustained by the sword energy, quickly melted and dissipated, as if it had never existed. Not even a trace of melted water remained on the ground, as if everything seen just now was merely an illusion, and only after escaping from it did we finally arrive at reality.

"Your swordsmanship has improved again?"

I quietly approached the approaching icy female swordswoman, but all I received was a silent shake of her head.

I don't know what she has come to understand, but it's always a good thing that the abilities of the people she knows have improved.

Looking to the other side, Alice still had a smiling, good-natured look, but her right hand was still gripping the ankle of the person from before, casually dragging him behind like a mop. It was unclear how much of the bloody mark that kept appearing behind her was caused by beating the opponent during the previous battle, and how much was caused by knocking the opponent unconscious and letting him collide with the rubble on the ground.

Anyway, I only dared to glance at it once, and then I didn't dare to ask any more questions.

But since she's an enemy, let her do as she pleases.

Strangely enough, even though the ice wall had been lifted, why did those wild mages who had just lost their fighting spirit still not choose to flee this place?

I turned around and looked around again. The same people were still sitting in their original positions, as if they had completely given up after confirming their defeat. Their postures hadn't changed much. Even when we were right in front of them, they remained the same. Their eyes, lowered and staring at the ground, were filled with a deep sense of gloom.

After asking out of curiosity, I ended up getting pretty much the same answer:

The task assigned was not completed, the person in charge was killed instantly, and he encountered a tough opponent that he couldn't handle. Since he was going to give up anyway, he simply gave up.

It really is a simple and easy-to-understand way of dealing with people.

"Leave them for now, let's go down and check on the hostages."

Seeing Alice volunteer to guard the prisoners, Miyuki shook her head and turned her gaze to the entrance to the basement.

The entrance to the basement was hidden near the entrance to the building's ground floor, which should have been ornately decorated. It was cleverly concealed by a small cabinet, which had been well-preserved by the previous heavy snowfall and covered by a canvas that had been scraped off the wall, yet it hadn't accumulated much dust.

I had seen the guard who stayed behind trying to lift the painting covering the entrance and get up, so I chose to pin him down to prevent it from affecting the subsequent battle.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!